The Leasehold reform: the key points
The Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act became law in 2024, but not all of its measures have yet been implemented. The reforms are intended to make extending leases and buying freeholds easier and cheaper, improve transparency around service charges and strengthen protections for leaseholders. Further leasehold and commonhold reforms are also being proposed by the government in 2026.
Updated October 2026: Since this article was first published, the Leasehold and Reform Act 2024 has become law. Some measures are already in force , while others are still awaiting implementation. The government has also published further proposals through its Commonhold and Leasehold Bill.
Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill
A much broader draft Bill was published in January 2026 and has undergone parliamentary scrutiny. Among the proposals are making commonhold the default for new flats, banning most leasehold flats, reforming forfeiture and introducing a cap on existing ground rents.
What is a leasehold property?
When buying a home, you can either purchase a freehold or a leasehold property. With a freehold property, you own the property and the land it’s built on outright. With a leasehold property, you buy the right to live in the property for a fixed number of years.
Why have things changed?
Many leaseholders have found themselves subject to high costs from ground rent, lease extensions, and service charge changes. They’ve also found it difficult to contest these issues. The Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act is designed to give leaseholders greater rights and increased protection.
What does leasehold reform mean for property owners in Gloucester and Tewkesbury?
-
Extending your lease or buying your freehold: The bill would make it less complex, cheaper, and quicker to extend your lease or buy your freehold.
-
Standard lease extension terms: Standard lease extension terms would increase to 990 years for houses and flats. This is up from 50 years for houses and 90 years for flats. However relevant provisions are not fully operational yet.
-
Greater transparency over service charges: Freeholders or managing agents would need to issue bills in a standardized format, making the data easier for leaseholders to assess and challenge.
-
Removal of legal barriers: The reforms would also look to rebalance legal costs and make it easier for leaseholders to challenge landlords over unreasonable charges.
-
Introduction of a redress scheme: Managing agents are already required to belong to a redress scheme. Under the new rules, freeholders who manage their building directly will do as well. This means leaseholders can challenge them if needed.
-
Comprehensive rights of redress: Homeowners on private and mixed-tenure estates would be granted comprehensive rights of redress. This means they’ll get more information about the charges they pay and the ability to challenge how reasonable they are.
-
Greater rights for those in mixed-use blocks of flats: At the moment, leaseholders in these buildings can’t take over the management of the site or buy the freehold if more than 25% of its floor space is commercial. Under the bill, this figure would increase to 50%.
-
No more new-build leaseholds (houses only): The sale of new leasehold houses would be banned, so every new house sold in England and Wales would be freehold (except for in exceptional circumstances).
- Proposed £250 annual ground-rent cap: With ground rent ultimately reducing to a peppercorn after 40 years.
Additional information
- You can find more information about the Leasehold Reform Bill on the government’s website.
- You can also read the full text of the bill here.
